


Unexpected

by swankyturnip76



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age II
Genre: Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Eventual Smut, Fenris Takes Care of Anders, Flirting, Fluff, Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Minor Injuries, Mutual Pining, Pining, Slow Build, Smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-06
Updated: 2017-07-02
Packaged: 2018-09-22 09:05:57
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 10,533
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9599288
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/swankyturnip76/pseuds/swankyturnip76
Summary: While Hawke is away on a mission, Anders gets beaten up by some thugs in Hightown and has nowhere else to go but to Fenris's mansion for safety. To his surprise, Fenris is an excellent healer with a gentle touch. Set during the second game. Rating may change for smut in later chapters.





	1. Unexpected

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoy this drabble! It will probably be only two or three chapters at most. Pretend for the sake of this fic that Hawke and Anders as mages can use all types of magic rather than the ones they are stuck with in the actual game.

Even if he hadn’t been a light sleeper, it would have been impossible for Fenris to ignore the pounding at the door of his mansion in the middle of the night. Leaping from his bed and grabbing his sword, Fenris hurried to the door. He expected it to be Hawke rousing him for another mission. Yet when Fenris unlocked and pulled open the door, he wasn’t quite prepared for the heap of mage that heavily fell to the floor at his feet.

“ _Fasta vass_! What happened?” He didn’t wait for an answer as he reached down and all but dragged the mage’s nearly unconscious body into the foyer. Kicking the door closed with a bare foot, Fenris rested his sword against the wall and squatted down to look at Anders.

The mage had raised himself onto his forearms and was breathing heavily. The skin around his left eye was blackened into a beautiful bruise, his bottom lip was split, and his nose was bleeding. His hair had come loose of its bind and looked quite messy. His robes had been ripped and there was a gash around his right bicep.

Anders coughed violently and Fenris was concerned he might start spewing blood onto the carpet.

“Come on – it would do no good to have you die in my foyer. Hawke would assume I killed you on purpose.”

Fenris waited for the mage to give him some sarcastic quip back but the banter never came.

“If you complain, I _will_ drop you. And I will feel no remorse, mage.”

Still no response. Fenris frowned as he scooped Anders up in his arms bridal-style. The mage gave a slight groan at the pain his wounds experienced as he was lifted, but he said nothing of protest. Fenris carried Anders into one of the spare bedrooms he had created next to his own. Bookshelves lined the walls and a simple bed, Fereldan-made, rested in the middle of the room. There was a small window that let in the moonlight. The floors were slightly dusty and it had been a few weeks since anyone slept in the bed, but the room was comfortable in its simplicity.

Fenris hardly ever had company but sometimes Hawke and co. would take a brief break at Fenris’s mansion before continuing a complicated mission. Hawke had explained that Fenris’s mansion was better suited for a temporary rest than his own because his mansion was usually full of people Leandra would be entertaining. Not to mention the space two dwarves, a serving girl, and a hound took up. While Fenris never particularly _liked_ having to play host, he did have enough space in his mansion to shelter the party for a while. Plus Hawke would usually save the best loot or gifts found on missions for Fenris as payment.

The mage’s body was especially cold and Fenris wondered if the mage had gotten into conflict with some apostates who knew ice magic. Fenris knew that after you were subjected to a cold spell, the results would linger for hours after the battle had ended.

Fenris lowered Anders’s body to the bed with more gentleness than he would have cared to admit. The mage’s eyes had closed and his breathing was still labored. Fenris wondered if perhaps he had been poisoned. When he voiced the question aloud, Anders gave a huff and shook his head.

“If I had been, I would have been dead by now.”

The mage looked up at him with a smirk and Fenris internally breathed a small sigh of relief at the twinkle in the mage’s eyes.

“Your injuries don’t look that serious but I am no expert healer. Should I fetch Hawke for you?”

Hawke was a mage too, after all, and would no doubt be able to use some kind of healing magic to help Anders far more than Fenris with his limited supply of bandages and healing herbs on reserve could. Plus Fenris wasn’t too inclined to spend this kind of one-on-one time with the mage. Hawke was much more sympathetic and would be a greater source of emotional support.

“No, I don’t...” The mage’s voice came out slightly choked and Anders coughed a little to clear away the tightness. Taking a breath, he tried again, “He’s not home. He’s on a mission with Aveline.”

Fenris sighed as he remembered. He had offered to go along with Hawke, but their leader had taken the dwarf, Aveline, and the Dalish blood mage with him instead.

“Why are you here?”

“Your mansion was closest,” Anders said before coughing again. “Had I been able to make it back to my clinic, I would have. Maker knows I would hate to impose.”

Fenris crossed his arms over his chest and frowned down at the mage. “Are you experiencing any internal bleeding?”

“Just the cuts and scrapes you see on the surface. With some elfroot and lyrium I’ll be on my way in no time.”

Fenris took in the way the mage’s nose still hadn’t stopped bleeding and considered how the sheets on the bed would probably have to be washed tomorrow. Giving a short sigh, Fenris relented and walked to a nearby cabinet. He pulled out a small bowl from inside, a roll of bandage cloth, some small towels, and three vials of elfroot. He walked back to the bed and placed the items on the bedside table. A well behind the mansion pumped clean water through the pipes for bathing and drinking. Uncorking one of the pipes in the room, Fenris filled the bowl with fresh water and rested it on the table. He unwrapped several of the bandages and held out a wad of cloth for Anders to hold against his nose to stop the bleeding. The mage seemed surprised at how thorough Fenris was being but held back any comments.

“What happened?”

“Earlier in the day I treated a woman with a disease that was passed on sexually,” Anders began. His voice was slightly muffled by the cloth covering his mouth to block the blood trickling out of his nose. “Apparently she didn’t contract it from her husband. When he found out, he was very angry that I had cured her. He thought she should have suffered for her actions. Of course, I didn’t know his strong opinion on the matter. There’s a black market seller here in Hightown who sells cheap lyrium and elfroot potions during odd hours. I was on my way to buy more supplies from him for my clinic when the angry husband and his friends attacked me. They were rogues who knew _exactly_ how to get in close. I was…heavily outnumbered. I did manage to cure up the majority of my wounds with magic, but without Hawke’s endless supply of elfroot and lyrium potions, I couldn’t finish the job. I was left too weakened to make it back to my clinic and your mansion was only a few blocks away…” Anders trailed off and Fenris couldn’t help but sigh.

“So of course you figured why not disturb the sleeping elf who hates you for some spare elfroot?”

Anders winced at that and the motion made Fenris’s eyes narrow slightly. Anders turned his gaze away and almost looked guilty for invading Fenris’s space.

“Like I said, I would have gone to Hawke’s but he is not home right now and Leandra does not exactly…approve of my company.”

Fenris actually smirked at that and couldn’t help but nod in agreement. It seemed that the only one Leandra _actually_ approved of in the group was Aveline.

“If you just give me some elfroot, these wounds will be healed up and I can return to my clinic.”

“As much as the thought of you leaving my home fills me with joy, I am afraid I cannot let you leave,” Fenris grumbled as he reached out to uncork an elfroot vial. “Those thugs who beat you up are probably still lingering around town. If you leave now, then there isn’t much stopping them from finishing you off. I don’t particularly care to have Hawke blame me for your death.” He handed the first vial to Anders and watched him drink the potion down quickly. “Besides your face and arm, is anything else injured?”

Anders turned his gaze away but Fenris kneeled down to be at his level.

“Mage, answer me,” Fenris ordered but it wasn’t as harshly delivered as he would have liked.

“My ankle…I sprained it.”

Fenris sighed. “You are lucky. Most would not have gotten away with so few injuries.”

“Most aren’t like me.”

Fenris silently agreed and rose back up to his full height. “You need time to heal. You will stay here for the night. Hawke should return from his mission in the morning. When he comes back, you will tell him what happened and I’ll accompany Hawke to hunt down these men.”

Anders raised an eyebrow as he regarded Fenris. “You would seek revenge upon them for hurting me?”

Fenris scoffed and looked away. “Hardly. I simply have been itching for a good fight. Don’t mistake it for kindness.”

But there was a light dusting of coloring to the warrior’s face and Anders couldn’t help but hide a smile behind the cloth.

Fenris gestured for Anders to remove the cloth and inspected the mage’s nose. It wasn’t broken but there would be some bad discoloration tomorrow. The bleeding had subsided. Fenris reached for a towel and the bowl and looked at Anders warily.

“Can you use ice magic on this?”

Anders nodded and Fenris watched as Anders chilled the water in the bowl into small chunks of ice. The action seemed to drain Anders and his arm unceremoniously dropped back to the bed. Fenris dumped some ice out onto a towel and bunched up the fabric. He leaned over slowly and gently rested the towel against the mage’s bruised eye. Anders flinched at the contact on the bruise but did not protest. He replaced Fenris’s hand on the towel with his own and held the towel to his eye. Looking up at Fenris with his unmarked right eye, Anders tilted his head.

“You are rather good at fixing simple wounds. Are you sure you aren’t a healer?”

Fenris grunted some unintelligible noise and moved back to the pipe to let fresh water run over the already-melting ice. Once he was satisfied with the amount of water in the bowl, Fenris moved back to the bed and sat down.

“I’ve had to patch myself and Hawke up enough times whenever you weren’t around to know the basics. Some wounds don’t require extensive healing magic.”

Fenris bunched up a wad of cloth and blotted it into the bowl of water, using his free hand to gently lift the mage’s chin up. The warrior’s bare hands were gauntlet-free. His touch was softer than Anders would have guessed and the gentleness with which Fenris handled him caused a slight blush to cover his features. Fenris studied Anders’s bottom lip with an intense scrutiny that caused the mage’s blush to deepen. Anders wasn’t used to being cared for by others and the clear attention Fenris was paying to him was unnerving. The warrior tenderly ran his thumb over the skin of the mage’s bottom lip. The incredibly intimate motion caused Anders’s breath to catch in his throat. For a heavy moment he simply stared at Fenris in wait but the warrior paid him no mind. Fenris pulled his hand back to inspect his thumb and saw the tiny trail of blood. Nodding to himself, Fenris dabbed the mage’s lip with the wet cloth, clearing it of blood. Anders could barely breathe as Fenris narrowed his eyes and gazed intensely at his task. The warrior was so close that Anders could smell the scent of fresh apples coming from him. He knew Hawke had given Fenris special bathing oil that smelled richly of apples and that the warrior treasured it. Fenris must have bathed right before going to bed because of how strong the scent was. Anders shakily inhaled the smell and it calmed his nerves a bit.

Fenris didn’t say anything.

When he seemed satisfied with his job, Fenris tossed the bloodied cloth on the floor to clean up later. He looked down and studied the gash on Anders’s bicep. It wasn’t that deep but had traveled across his bicep, causing enough blood to escape and become troublesome. The mage’s robes were torn anyway and Fenris knew the loose fabric would only interfere with the wound. Some strips of the fabric had already started sticking to the wound. Giving a huff, Fenris rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

“I need to wrap the wound on your arm.”

Anders lifted an eyebrow in question and Fenris swore in Tevene at the mage’s daftness.

“Which I _cannot_ do because your damn robes are in the way.”

Anders looked confused for a moment longer before recognition lit up his eyes and his grin grew feral.

“I knew all of our banter was simply pent-up tension. If you wanted me to undress, you only needed to ask.”

“I shouldn’t have answered the door,” Fenris muttered. A blush spread from his cheeks to the tips of his ears and down his neck. Anders found it incredibly appealing and couldn’t help but chuckle at Fenris’s discomfort. The warrior was glaring a hole at the opposite wall.

“Ah, but then you would have had to deal with a very pissed off Hawke tomorrow and we simply couldn’t have that,” Anders quipped. He sat up with a slight grimace and reached with his left hand to undo his robes. However, the clasps were tricky and after a few moments of struggling, Anders let out a curse.

“It seems I need someone to undress me after all.”

Fenris ignored the lewd comment and paid extra attention to keeping his hands as steady as possible as he undid the clasps on the mage’s robes. Fenris made quick work of the task and Anders resisted making anymore insinuating comments. Anders was able to navigate out of his robes with Fenris’s help and was left in nothing but a pair of tight leggings and a white shirt. The sleeves had been cut off and the neckline hung low on the mage’s collar bones, exposing them to Fenris’s wandering eyes. Fenris swallowed thickly and didn’t meet Anders’s watchful gaze. Instead he turned his attention back to the table and reached out for a vial of ground-up elfroot. After dabbing it onto the gash for cleansing, Fenris took a roll of bandage cloth and maneuvered the mage’s arm a bit away from his body. Fenris held the tip of the cloth down with one hand and began wrapping the roll around Anders’s arm with his other. Fenris’s movements were once again precise and steady as he worked. His touch was warm and comforting. Anders watched in silent awe for a few minutes as Fenris bandaged him perfectly.

“I really could use someone like you in the clinic some time for the more minor of injuries. You really know what you’re doing.”

Fenris jumped slightly at the unexpected vocalization, but he covered it with a half-shrug of a shoulder. “Like I told you, I have had plenty of practice. It’s not like this is particularly difficult to do, either.”

“Still, I am grateful. Really.”

Fenris’s eyes rose from his work to meet the mage’s and Fenris felt something clench in his chest at the pure gratitude he saw in those amber eyes.

“Thank you, Fenris. You didn’t have to do all of this.”

The warrior’s immediate response was to give some sarcastic reminder about how Hawke would have been mad at him for not helping Anders but Fenris couldn’t seem to say it. Maybe it was the way the moonlight caught the mage’s eyes and made the amber shine in a lovely way. Or perhaps it was the fact that the mage’s body had warmed up considerably since being under Fenris’s care. The room felt too warm all of a sudden and Fenris quickly looked away from Anders, cursing the way the blush on his face betrayed him.

“Just…don’t get too comfortable.”

Anders smiled kindly as Fenris finished tying off the bandage and stood up from the bed.

“Tomorrow I will bring you more elfroot and some lyrium to regain your strength. But for now you must rest.”

Fenris moved away from the bed to leave but Anders quickly called out, “Fenris!”

The warrior paused in the doorway and tilted his head slightly toward Anders.

“Remind me to treat you at the next Wicked Grace night.”

Fenris chuckled lowly and the sound broadened the mage’s grin.

When Anders slept that night, he dreamed of a pair of emerald eyes and a gentle touch.


	2. Avenging Anders

Fenris awoke before dawn. His body protested as he stood up, cracked his back, and made quick work of putting on his armor. He grabbed an apple for the road and left his bedroom. Fenris gently creaked open the door of the guest room and peered in. Anders had accumulated three more blankets to the initial one Fenris had given him and was cocooned underneath them. His breathing was even but his body was shivering slightly. Fenris briefly worried the mage had in fact been poisoned after all. Shaking his head to clear it, Fenris softly closed the door behind him and left his mansion, making sure to lock the door behind him. It was true that the men who had attacked Anders in the first place were rogues, but Fenris doubted even they would be able to pick the complicated lock he had had Varric help install. Fenris swiftly made his way to Hawke’s mansion and pounded on the door.

Bodahn answered him with a big smile. “Ah, welcome! Shall I fetch Serrah Hawke for you?”

“Immediately, Bodahn. I am in a bit of a hurry.”

Bodahn led the way into the mansion and Fenris hung back in the foyer. He knew that he could have just as easily gone and dragged Hawke out of bed by the ankles, but he didn’t want to seem rude in front of Bodahn. The dwarf was one of the few people left in Kirkwall worth respecting. Plus Fenris wasn’t particularly fond of the idea of dealing with a grumpy Hawke all morning.

Within minutes the mage was rushing down the stairs, staff in hand.

“Fenris! To what do I owe this unexpected visit so Maker-damn early in the morning?”

“The mage is injured. Not critically – I treated the majority of his wounds and now he is resting – but he was attacked last night while you were gone. You will accompany me to kill them and then I will return to my mansion with more elfroot and lyrium for him.”

Hawke paused mid-step and gave Fenris a look that was half awe and half wariness.

“You…treated his wounds?”

Fenris shifted on his feet and looked away from Hawke. “If I let him die, you would have blamed me for his death.”

Hawke raised an eyebrow but Fenris sighed impatiently. “Shall we away already?”

Hawke’s lips formed a smirk and something danced in his eyes. “I am surprised at your level of care for your fiercest enemy.”

“ _He_ is not my fiercest enemy,” Fenris replied snappily. He turned on his heels and swiftly exited Hawke’s mansion. “Are you coming or not?”

Hawke snorted but followed anyway.

He couldn’t wait to tell Varric.

**XXXXX**

The dwarf in question was already awake and halfway through a delicious breakfast with Isabela when Fenris and Hawke arrived at the Hanged Man to pick them up. Varric initially complained about having to leave such a delicious feast, but when Hawke informed him of the situation, taking _extra_ care to emphasis Fenris’s role as the mage’s caretaker, Varric’s eyes widened and he was encouraged to help out. If nothing else, Fenris and Anders would probably find themselves at the heart of Varric’s next novel. The idea disgusted Fenris and he would have marched home if not for the fact that this mission was strangely important to him.

Surprisingly, Hawke didn’t have to do much investigating to find the whereabouts of the men who attacked Anders. Because the majority of the inhabitants of Kirkwall owed their lives to Anders, many residents were quick to provide information. The group was able to follow the information to an elderly man who had been passing through Hightown when he witnessed the attack. Because of his age, however, the man had not been able to do much to help the healer. The man accompanied the group to the docks, where he recalled seeing the attackers working during the day. As soon as he pointed out the specific ones who had beaten up Anders, Fenris drew his sword.

“Fenris, wait. We need a plan of attack.”

“By the time you develop a plan, I’ll have killed them.”

“Fenris.”

The warrior bit his tongue but waited. Hawke decided it would be best to flank the men as they worked and then pick them off. Only six of the dozen or so men working the docks were identified as the culprits. Fenris knew that the others would flee once fighting broke out. Hawke signaled for the group to make its move. Fenris crouched low and traveled behind some stacked-up crates to avoid being easily spotted. He waited until the nearest man’s back was to him and then he leapt high, bringing his sword down in a merciless arc. His blade cut deeply through the man’s shoulder, but the man had no time to fight back. In one swift motion, Fenris kicked him to the ground and drove his sword through the man’s back.

“You’ve messed with the wrong mage.”

Fenris tore his blade out of the man’s lifeless body and looked around. Isabela and Varric had taken down two of the men, while Hawke was cornered by the remaining three. Fenris leapt to Hawke’s side, driving the rogues away from him long enough for Hawke to cast ice magic on them. The fight was over once Fenris managed to grab the group’s leader by the throat and lift him into the air.

“My bitch wife deserved to suffer!” He choked out against Fenris’s grip. “She should have suffered!”

“A healer _heals_ ,” Fenris whispered darkly as he raised his free hand. “It does not matter the circumstances of injury. Anders cares for those who go to him for aid. _You’re_ the one who deserves to suffer.”

“No, no, please!”

When Hawke didn’t stop him, Fenris reached his hand into the man’s chest and crushed his heart.  Tossing the lifeless body to the ground, Fenris glared down at the dead man before turning to look at his companions.

“The mage has been avenged. I thank you for your help in this matter.”

“Is it me or is it _really_ hot out here?” Isabela asked in a mock stage-whisper as she fanned herself with her hand. “I wish I had a man ready to rip out people’s hearts for me!”

“Rivaini, you already do enough heartbreaking yourself,” Varric laughed as he shouldered Bianca. “Wanna leave this mess for the Guard-Captain to deal with?”

**XXXXXX**

Fenris accompanied Hawke back to his mansion. The mage took only a few minutes to assemble a picnic basket full of elfroot, lyrium, and food.

“His appetite is _insatiable_ , so if you don’t feed him right away when you get back, he will be a complete _asshole_ for the rest of the day. Take my advice. If he’s feeling up to it, then the two of you should come by later on tonight to check in. I worry about the kinds of trouble you both get into when I’m not around to save the day.”

Fenris scoffed and rolled his eyes, but took the basket gratefully.

Hawke gave him an odd look for a moment longer before saying, “You know…it _could_ be possible for a mage to bring you pleasure and happiness rather than pain. You should try it with him. You might be surprised.”

“The mage and I are not…we are nothing,” Fenris groaned impatiently. “Like I told you before, you were not here and he was injured. What else was I –”

Hawke’s knowing smile cut him off. “Riiiight…of course.”

Fenris shot him a glare before turning abruptly away and making his way out of the mansion.

“Fenris!”

The warrior paused and shot a look back over his shoulder at Hawke. The mage’s grin was positively feral.

“Don’t let him be too much of a power bottom!”

Had Fenris had magical abilities, Hawke would have been set on fire.


	3. Thank You

Fenris returned to find Anders still sleeping. He quietly approached the mage and contemplated whether or not to take the mage’s temperature. Anders didn’t look feverish anymore but merely sleeping. He did have large bags under his eyes – was Anders getting even less sleep than usual? The thought shouldn’t have concerned Fenris – what did he care if the mage wasn’t sleeping? But Fenris couldn’t bring himself to wake Anders. Gently he set the picnic basket down beside the bed and decided to leave the mage to rest. Fenris’s blood was still pumping from killing those bastards that morning but he didn’t want to leave his mansion. Making up his mind, he decided to utilize the sparring room he had created downstairs near the foyer. He had had a few dummies enchanted to train against. Grabbing his sword, Fenris set to work.

**XXXXX**

The warrior had lost track of time while training. It wasn’t until after he had finished another round with one of the dummies that he heard a clearing of a throat behind him. Spinning around, blade at the ready, Fenris was wholly ready to assail the intruder. The sight of Anders made him pause at the last possible second.

“Mage…what are you doing up?”

Anders looked sheepish as he rubbed the back of his neck. “I took some elfroot and lyrium potions and feel much better. The food you provided was delicious, by the way…did Hawke lend it to you?”

Fenris returned his blade to its proper spot on his back as he gave a nod. “Yes, he sends his regards and informed me that you would have quite the appetite upon waking so he provided extra food for you.”

“That was generous of him,” Anders replied with a soft smile. Something akin to jealousy pricked at Fenris. The mage’s eyes rose to meet his but Fenris couldn’t hold his gaze. He busied himself with putting away the dummies as the mage asked, “So you met Hawke this morning then? Did his mission go well?”

“Yes. He offered to host us for dinner tonight if you are feeling up to it. You should be resting, though. Your injuries need time to heal.”

“Why Fenris, if I didn’t know any better, I would think you were worried about little old me.”

Fenris felt the back of his neck heat up as Anders mock-batted his eyes at the warrior. Giving an audible scoff, Fenris turned his back completely to the mage in order to busy himself with some invisible mess in the room.

“So…what did you and Hawke get up to this morning then?”

Fenris straightened a little bit. He could have remained silent about killing the mage’s attackers but he didn’t want to lie to Anders. Fenris wasn’t sure why that thought bothered him.

“We, along with Isabela and Varric, tracked down those men that hurt you and made them pay.”

The warrior’s declaration was met with silence and Fenris turned his head slightly to look back and see confusion and awe plastered across the mage’s face.

“You…you killed them?”

Fenris stiffened at the tone in Anders’s voice. It wasn’t disagreement but more…surprise with the warrior’s actions.

“I needed a good fight and they seemed like as good targets as any.”

Anders raised an eyebrow, letting Fenris know that he saw more to the warrior’s story than Fenris was letting on, and Fenris let out an awkward cough of dismissal. “It doesn’t matter. They won’t bother you any more from now on.”

“You killed them to protect me…? Fenris, that’s…rather admirable of you. Thank you.”

Fenris couldn’t look at Anders. He didn’t have to keep the mage in his peripheral vision to see the honest gratitude that enveloped the mage. Fenris felt the blush expand from his neck to his cheeks as he gestured dismissively.

“Twas nothing. You didn’t deserve their rage last night, that’s all.”

A gentle hand on his shoulder caused Fenris to hold his breath as he stilled. Anders squeezed lightly and the warrior slowly turned around to face him. Anders moved his hand down the warrior’s arm, causing a trail of goose bumps in their wake, and finally settled on holding Fenris’s hand briefly.

“Thank you for doing that. You’ve done so much for me, I…thank you.”

Fenris felt his throat close up a bit as Anders squeezed his hand. Those amber eyes were radiant and Fenris struggled to look away.

“Y-you’re welcome.”

Internally cursing his stuttering, Fenris pulled his hand away out of embarrassment and looked down at the ground. They were standing too close – Anders was _too close_. A dull haze had begun settling into Fenris’s mind – the kind that takes one’s body over and clouds one’s judgment. Blinking himself out of it, Fenris cleared his throat and moved to step around Anders and leave the room.

“You should stay here until you are completely well. We’ll have dinner tonight with Hawke if you so desire.” Fenris left the room, willing his heart to settle down and wondering just why the fuck he had invited the mage to stay longer than he needed to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all who have reviewed so far and left kind words and kudos! Fear not, this story is not finished yet! I also upped the rating because there will definitely be smut to come! This fic is also going to be a bit longer than initially predicted - I hope that doesn't bother any of you! As always, please leave a review and there will be more to come soon enough!


	4. The Forgotten Prince

Fenris was apprehensive. That simple touch Anders had given him had set him on edge for the rest of the day. It wasn't that he _wanted_ Anders to touch him more - that certainly couldn't possibly be it. Anders was a _mage_ for Maker's sake!

But it _had_ felt nice.

Fenris roughly shook his head to clear himself of his traitorous thoughts as he moseyed throughout his mansion, picking up random items that had fallen over or didn't belong wherever they had ended up and returning them to their rightful places. His mansion wasn't really that messy but he busied himself with cleaning it anyway. He certainly wasn't cleaning it because he had company or anything. Yet no matter how distracted Fenris tried to make himself, he couldn't get the feeling of Anders's hand on his skin and in his hand out of his head.

_It's just been a while since I've been with anyone. That's it. Maybe I'll call up Isabela._

But the thought of being with the pirate sexually left an oddly sour taste in his mouth as he glanced up at the open door that led to Anders's room. 

_Why should I care what he thinks of me sleeping with Isabela? He's slept with her himself - and probably countless others! It doesn't matter. The opinion of a_ mage _doesn't matter._

Fenris remembered the soft smile that had braced the mage's face when he spoke about Hawke. _I wonder if they've slept together. Bah, what does it matter? It doesn't. The mage can fuck whoever he wants._

Pushing aside the odd sense of jealousy at the thought of those magical hands rubbing someone else's skin and coaxing feelings of bliss and pleasure out of them, Fenris found his feet leading him up to the mage's room. Pushing the open door further open, Fenris stood in the doorway. Anders was laying in bed reading one of the books from Fenris's shelves. At the elf's arrival, the mage looked up and smiled gently.

"Hello Fenris. How goes the cleaning adventure?"

The elf scowled. "My mansion is perfectly clean."

"If it was then you wouldn't be stress cleaning," Anders replied, his smile quirking up a bit at the corners. "Is there something on your mind?"

Fenris's scowl deepened. Instead of giving a reply, his eyes fell to the title of the book Anders was reading and took a moment to decipher it. " _The Forgotten Pirate_? That is a child's story."

Anders nodded with a laugh. "I admit, it is a bit below my reading level, but I do so love the story. A handsome pirate captain marooned on a deserted island falls in love with one of the cannibalistic natives and learns how to survive in unfamiliar territory. Rather exciting, wouldn't you say?"

Fenris scoffed and rolled his eyes. "The story is completely unrealistic. As if a native of that island would let him live rather than eating him."

"Is that what you would do? Eat your loved ones?"

Fenris quirked an eyebrow at the completely lewd smirk on the mage's face. "She's a cannibal! It's what she does."

"Ah yes, you do so love your labels."

Fenris groaned as he leaned back against the doorway frame. "Ugh, you are _not_ going to make a social issue out of this. I don't want to hear about the plight of mages in my own home."

Anders laughed. It was a carefree, open laugh. The kind that made Fenris blink in surprise at just how lovely the sound was. "Oh Fenris, how could anyone think I don't enjoy your company?"

Fenris wasn't sure what to make of that but the smile that touched the mage's lips as he grinned up at the elf with humor in his eyes was enough to make the elf clear his throat and look away. "It's a dumb story."

"Is that why you have three copies on your shelf?"

Oh, the mage was truly mocking him.

Fenris crossed his arms defensively over his chest with a glare aimed at the floor as he muttered, "Isabela and Varric gave me the other copies unknowing I already had one. They were trying to help."

"Help?"

Fenris swallowed uncomfortably as he didn't meet the mage's eyes. "Yes. I have been...working on my...literacy level," he whispered the last part out of embarrassment. "The others thought that starting out small and gradually moving on to bigger works would help."

"Fenris, that's marvelous."

The elf's head whipped up at that. But Anders's face and tone weren't mocking anymore. In fact, the mage looked deep in contemplation. "If you want, I might have a few old books I gathered on my wanderings as a Warden if you're interested in adding to your collection. Maker knows they'd probably be better off here on a shelf than stashed away in a moldy chest in Darktown. I assure you they are more exciting and interesting than _The Forgotten Pirate_."

Fenris didn't know what to say to that. He was used to Varric or Isabela leaving works of literature around his mansion for him to stumble upon, but never did he imagine _Anders_ of all people would want to help him with his reading. Fenris stiffened and couldn't help the air of defensiveness he put up around himself as he shook his head. "That won't be necessary. I don't need your help or your...your _charity_."

Anders opened his mouth to say something and Fenris felt his body tense up in response. He waited for the mage to give some scathing remark but it never came. Instead, Anders closed his open lips and gave a small nod. "Whatever you like, Fenris."

For some reason that concede of defeat was a thousand times worse than any spiteful comment Anders could have made. Fenris couldn't handle the somewhat sad look on the mage's face at being denied. The elf turned on his heels and left the room, throwing a, "We'll head to Hawke's for dinner in an hour," over his shoulder as he left.

Anders didn't reply and Fenris felt his ears burn in disappointment as he went.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, thank you for your kind reviews and kudos! They spur me on to write more quickly whenever I get positive feedback :) If you want, you can send me fic prompts at swankaliciouschekov.tumblr.com


	5. The Dinner Party

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two chapters uploaded in one day? Y'all are lucky! As always, thank you for your kind reviews and kudos!

The walk to Hawke's mansion was a silent one. Fenris stubbornly refused to look at Anders. The internal battle he was having with his conflicting emotions towards the mage was not helpful. Anders had his staff with him and Fenris eyed the piece of wood suspiciously. _It's only a matter of time until he turns against you._ Fenris shook his head to clear the dismal thoughts. Anders caught the action out of the corner of his eye and raised a brow at Fenris. The elf scowled in response.

_Well this is going to be a lovely dinner._

They arrived at Hawke's mansion and Fenris knocked loudly. Bodahn answered with a huge, beaming grin. 

"Welcome, serrahs! It is so good to see you both in one piece!"

"It's good to see you too," Anders replied warmly. "How are you and Sandal doing?"

Bodahn moved back to allow them both to enter the mansion. Fenris could hear the faint sounds of laughter and joke-telling and immediately recognized the voices of Varric and Isabela. At least it wouldn't be an awkward dinner with just him, Hawke, and Anders.

"Oh, we are doing just dandy! Serrah Hawke has provided us with wonderful accommodations here."

Fenris only half-listened to the dwarf's genuine blessings of Hawke's generosity. His eyes swept the mansion, looking for any sign of Hawke's mother.

"The lady of the house is not here tonight," Bodahn replied to Fenris's silent searching. "She is on a date! Can you believe that? Serrah Hawke was certainly surprised. Go on, make yourselves at home."

Fenris and Anders traveled through the mansion, following the sounds of laughter and merriment until they came to the room that housed the party. Varric was in the middle of one of his stories, Isabela's feet propped up on his lap, while Merrill and Hawke listened with rapt amazement. Aveline and Donnic sat against the wall, Aveline listening with a skeptical raised eyebrow while Donnic wore a look of pure wonder at the story. At Fenris and Anders's arrival, Varric paused his story and shouted, "The devils themselves! It's about time you both got here. Too busy being engrossed in one another's company to arrive sooner?"

Fenris shot him a glare as he moved to sit on the carpet between Hawke and Donnic. "Hawke didn't tell me a specific time or that the company would be so numerous."

Hawke gave a guilty grin as he shrugged at Fenris. "Details, details. You're both here though, and that's what matters." His eyes moved to sweep over Anders in concern. "Are you feeling better? Fenris told us what happened."

The mage actually looked rather sheepish as he leaned his staff against the wall and took a seat on the floor between Isabela and Merrill. "I am, thank you. And thank you for what you did earlier today. Fenris told me of your actions to avenge me and I must say, it was...well...thank you."

Fenris noticed the blush that overtook the mage's face as Hawke beamed. "No problem! Anyone who hurts any of the people I love deserve to eat shit. Though Aveline did a far amount of complaining with the amount of paperwork she had to fill out to cover up our 'mindless killing'."

_Love?_

The word hung in Fenris's mind as he looked between Anders and Hawke. Surely Hawke had just meant the word as platonic love, right? Right?

Aveline's scoff interrupted his thoughts as she rolled her eyes. "Just once if I could go a day without having to clean up one of your messes, I would be thrilled. Though I must say I am glad to see you in one piece," she muttered, not meeting Anders's eyes. The mage smiled in response and Fenris felt something clench in his chest at the sight.

"Anyway, if I could continue my thrilling tale," Varric said with a dramatic flourish of his hand. "There our hero was, stranded on the Wounded Coast with nothing but a pair of wool socks and a dagger to use for protection..."

Fenris barely listened to the dwarf's tale. Instead, he was far too engrossed in subtlety watching Anders throughout the story. The mage had leaned back on his forearms to listen to the tale, occasionally leaning over to hear and smirk at a lewd remark from Isabela. At one point in the story, Anders glanced over to him and Fenris hadn't had the speed to look away. The mage quirked an eyebrow as their gazes met and Fenris was caught staring. Blushing lightly, Fenris forced his gaze to look back at Varric and try and focus on the story.

He could feel the mage's gaze on him for the remaining duration of the story.

Once Varric concluded the tale, Merrill clapped her hands in glee. "Oh, Varric, that was wonderful! You must tell us another one!"

"Perhaps over dinner. Hawke, I think the food must be ready by now, hmm?"

Hawke snapped himself out of the reverie Varric's story had caused him to enter and nodded hastily. "Oh, definitely. Come now, let us move to the dining room."

As the group stood up to merge into the next room, Isabela moved back to walk beside Fenris. The elf nearly missed her hushed, "Like the story, did you?"

"Shut up," Fenris muttered. Of course Isabela of all fucking people would have noticed him checking out Anders.

He ignored her laugh and said, "It was boring and didn't warrant my attention."

"No, your attention seemed perfectly captivated elsewhere."

He shot her a glare and saw the predatory smirk on her face.

"Enjoying your new housemate?"

"He's not a permanent addition," Fenris growled. "He's just staying until he gets better. Tomorrow he can probably go back to cursing the existence of templars and seeking freedom for abominations in his clinic."

Her gaze softened as she whispered, "Or maybe you're just trying to push him away because you're scared."

"Scared? I'm not -" his indignant reply was cut off as they arrived in the dining room and Hawke gestured to the multitude of food before them.

"Enjoy, friends!"

**XXXXXX**

Hawke and Varric sat at the ends of the table with Aveline, Donnic, and Fenris on the left and Merrill, Isabela, and Anders on the right. Fenris was seated directly across from Anders with Hawke between them. Cursing his luck, Fenris refused to look at Anders throughout the meal, instead choosing to engage Aveline in conversation about her honeymoon to Orlais. As he listened to her and Donnic swap stories about how beautiful it was this time of year, he heard Anders and Hawke engaging in a hushed conversation next to and across from him.

"You're looking paler than normal, Anders. Are you not getting enough sleep? Did the food help this morning?"

"Oh yes, thank you for that. It was very delicious. And the nightmares have been rather unbearable lately.

_Nightmares?_

Hawke nodded in sympathy. "Have you tried sleeping spells? Justice hasn't been keeping you up, has he? He and I will have words if -"

Anders quickly shook his head. "No, no, it's not him. I've just been...preoccupied lately. Had a lot on my mind."

Fenris wanted to chance a glance at the mage but was afraid of giving his eavesdropping away, so instead he nodded at something Aveline said and turned his gaze to Merrill and Varric as if to appear engrossed in their conversation.

"If you need anyone to talk to, you know I'm always here, right?"

Fenris saw Hawke reach out and rest a hand over Anders's from the corner of his eye. The movement made his eyes narrow slightly. Anders looked down at the hand for a moment before resting his free hand briefly on top of Hawke's.

"Thank you, Hawke. For everything. But I think this is something I must deal with alone."

"You shouldn't be alone, Anders," Hawke whispered.

Fenris felt his blood run cold. Was Hawke about to suggest Anders spend the night? Wasn't Hawke dating Merrill? Would she care? Would Anders care?

But what came next out of Hawke's mouth was a suggestive, "Perhaps having a roommate will keep you warm at night."

" _Hawke_ ," Anders admonished, casting a fleeting glance of worry at Fenris. Fenris's display of seeming engrossed in Varric's conversation must have worked because Anders looked back at Hawke and whispered, "Must you be so invasive?"

The host chuckled warmly and withdrew his hand from Anders in order to reach for more food. "I'm just staying, you should have seen the spark in his eyes this morning. Someone that full of purpose doesn't just feel _nothing_ for the one he's avenging."

"I...it's not like that," Anders whispered in a rather defeated tone. Fenris's chest felt tight at the sound. "He's not interested."

Hawke gave the mage a sympathetic smile. "Give it time."

Fenris bristled and gave some remark to one of Varric's jokes to hide the fact that it felt as though he couldn't breathe.

_Was Anders really interested? What did that mean for him? How did he feel about that? Did he_ want _Anders to be interested?_

The questions swarmed through the elf's mind as dinner continued. 

**XXXXXX  
**

The walk back to Fenris's mansion was slower than the walk to Hawke's mansion. Both men seemed lost in their own thoughts. Anders cleared his throat and the sound made Fenris jump slightly.

"So I think tomorrow I'll be well enough to return to my clinic. I'm sure my patients need me."

Fenris nodded, the action causing his hair to fall over his eyes. "You're welcome to take some spare lyrium and elfroot with you. You'll need it to keep your strength up and I'm sure your clinic could use the extra supplies."

"That's very generous and thoughtful of you. Thank you, Fenris."

The elf shrugged. Silence resumed until they made it to the door of Fenris's mansion where Anders paused.

"Fenris, there's something..."

The elf paused alongside him and looked up at the mage with a questioning look. Anders cleared his throat again and didn't meet the elf's eyes. "I was wondering..."

Fenris felt his heartbeat speed up without really knowing why. In that moment Fenris realized he wanted Anders to finish that thought in so many different ways - all of which hopefully ended in a kiss.

Anders gave a frustrated sigh and raised his gaze to meet the elf's. "You've changed. In the years I've known you, you've grown and you've become someone...admirable. You're selfless, you protect those closest to you, and you don't let anyone stop you from being free. It's...you're..." he trailed off as he slowly reached out and took Fenris's hand like he had that morning. "I misjudged you. I let my stubbornness blind me and I am sorry. Forgive me?"

Fenris couldn't breathe. He looked down at where his hand was gently being held by the mage's and stared in surprise. Once again, Fenris didn't want to pull away. Slowly he lifted his gaze to look into Anders's amber eyes.

"Okay."

The soft voice brought a beaming smile to the mage's face. Anders brushed his thumb back and forth over Fenris's hand and the motion caused a wave of heat to course through the elf's body.

"Perhaps we could...start again. Begin anew?"

The hopeful tone to Anders's voice caused Fenris's heart to pound in his chest as he gave a nod. "A-alright."

Cursing his stuttering and inability to give more than one word answers, Fenris looked away from the mage's face. A sudden burst of shame and embarrassment ran through him and he pulled back from Anders. The physical contact was, once again, too much for Fenris to handle. And though he craved more, he had to step back away from the mage to put some space between them. Turning back to his front door, Fenris quickly unlocked it and moved into the house.

"Good - good night, mage."

"Goodnight, Fenris."


	6. Mulling It Over

_"Perhaps we could...start again. Begin anew?"_

The mage's relatively one-sided conversation on the front steps of his mansion had been plaguing at his mind for hours. The sun would be rising soon but Fenris couldn't sleep. He was filled with a sense of wonder and excitement at what Anders's request could mean. What _did_ it mean? Fenris replayed the conversation Hawke and Anders had had at dinner through his mind. Obviously the mage wanted some kind of...relationship? Friendship? And with _him_ of all people! Fenris tossed and turned thinking about it. A friendship with the mage didn't seem realistic when he considered everything that he stood for - _Maker_ , they fought all the time for a _reason_! Yet the warrior couldn't rid himself of that pleading look in the mage's eyes that had begged him to say yes to starting over. 

But why?

_Why_ did Anders want to be his friend? _Why_ did he apologize to Fenris that night and why did he want them to "begin anew"? It didn't make sense. 

The elf resolved to ask the mage about it in the morning.

**XXXXX**

Fenris never got the chance. When his eyes opened after what felt like only minutes of sleeping, the mage had left. Anders had made his bed and took off with some of the spare lyrium and elfroot Fenris had suggested he take. The warrior found a note left for him on the neatly fluffed pillow.

_Dear Fenris,_

_Thank you for your hospitality. Words cannot express my gratitude. I hope you will join me for dinner sometime soon. I would like to make good on my promise for us to start over. I would very much like to take the time to get to know you more._

_Sincerely,_

_Anders_

Fenris blinked. The idea of having an intimate dinner over candlelight with the mage made him feel funny. Fenris wasn't adverse to the idea but more...cautious. A romantic dinner wasn't something he had ever experienced before. But _did_ Anders want it to be romantic? Fenris reread the letter and decided that the mage's declaration the night before could have been purely platonic, in which case Fenris would feel very foolish picturing the dinner as a date. Making up his mind, the elf decided he would bluntly ask Anders what his intentions were and then make up his own mind about what course of action he wanted to pursue with Anders based on that answer. 

But when to ask him?

It would seem rather creepy and overbearing for Fenris to march right down to the clinic this second and ask the mage. No, let him reunite with his patients and do some clinical work first. Fenris resolved to go and ask Hawke if perhaps there were any quests he could accompany him on as a distraction.

**XXXXXX**

Hawke, as always, was in proper need of three companions to go on a treasure hunting quest. Therefore, Fenris delighted himself in the company of Varric, Isabela, and Hawke as they stormed the Bone Pit, following clues to the whereabouts of a dragon's nest. Fighting the dragon was a simple enough task, looting all of the gold it left behind was another matter entirely.

"What are you going to do with your heavy share, Broody?"

Fenris pondered Varric's question the way back to Hightown and wasn't sure how to answer. He didn't really _need_ the money - any expenses in relation to his mansion were paid off and he had suitable armor and weaponry. Passing one of the local market stalls on his way home, Fenris eyed a pile of elfroot potions and decided he _did_ have a use for the money.

Or rather, he knew of a healer who had use for it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a little filler until the next chapter!


	7. Kindness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fenris visits Anders at the clinic to drop off the elfroot and ask about the nature of their "date" and makes a friend.

Fenris waited another day before making his way to the mage's clinic in Darktown. He had gingerly placed the elfroot potions he had bought the day before in a sack he now carried over his shoulder beside his sword. The walk to Anders's clinic was left fairly quiet and nobody tried to pick a fight with him on his venture. It was still early in the morning and Fenris guessed that Anders wouldn't have _too_ many patients quite yet.

He was mistaken.

As he pushed open the door and poked his head in, Fenris was immediately overwhelmed with the stench of blood, vomit, and piss. Scrunching his face up, Fenris warily made his way past coughing and bleeding patients to where Anders was currently letting healing magic flow into an elderly patient. Anders barely looked up at the warrior’s arrival.

“Hello Fenris.”

“Mage,” Fenris greeted. He tried not to feel bad at the overly exhausted tone in the mage’s voice. Remembering his reason for coming, Fenris slid the bag off his shoulder and held it up so that Anders could see it out of his peripheral vision.

“I bought you some extra potions to resupply your stock here. I figured you could use them more than me.” Fenris nodded to the crowded room around them as if proving his point.

Anders cut off the supply of magic he had been pouring into the elderly patient and wiped his brow with a dirty arm.

“You didn’t have to do that.”

Fenris shrugged nonchalantly. His eyes swept the room again and fell on a small girl, no more than seven, who was curled up on a bed a few feet from them. Her face was pale and she was coughing badly. Anders followed his gaze and gave a small sigh.

“No parents. Merrill found her in the Alienage and brought her here but Merrill had to run off on a mission with Hawke. I promised her I would do all I could for the girl, but…”

“Will the elfroot help?”

Anders sighed again and ran a hand through his hair, seemingly not caring that he was coating the fine, blond locks in blood and dirt. “It might but I’m honestly not sure. There’s a sickness going around and I haven’t been able to locate the cause. Elfroot won’t hurt, though, that’s for sure.”

Anders turned back to his current patient but Fenris couldn’t look away from the girl. Some part of his brain was telling him just to leave the bag and head out – that he was not responsible for these people and that Anders and his fellow healers could handle it all. Fenris glanced at Anders and knew the mage was even more worn down than usual. Fenris looked back at the girl and finally noticed the slightly pointed tips of her tiny ears.

“Can I…?” Fenris trailed off. Anders glanced at him and raised a curious eyebrow but nodded before turning back to his patient. Fenris reached into the sack and took out a vial of elfroot before approaching the girl.

Her bright, brown eyes looked up at him curiously as he approached. He watched her take in the mighty length of the sword on his back with wide eyes.

“I’m not going to hurt you. Anders said I could help.”

She blinked at his gravelly voice and her eyes quickly flitted to where Anders was working. She let out a few hoarse coughs as her eyes turned back to him.

Fenris kneeled down so that he could be at her level. The bed was nothing more than a shabby mattress on the dirty floor. A part of his heart clenched at seeing someone so sick reduced to such poor accommodations.

“Drink this. It will help.”

The girl was hesitant, as she had every right to be. It was no common secret that elves were often offered ‘healing potions’ that, in actuality, were poisons meant to eradicate them from existence. The girl looked back up at him and seemed to take in the pointed tips of Fenris’s own ears.

“You’re not –” a vicious cough interrupted her, “ –from the Alienage.”

Fenris shook his head as he uncapped the bottle and held it out to her. “No, I’m not…from Kirkwall.”

“Are you friends?”

It took him a minute to realize she was referring to Anders. For some reason the question made a faint coloring creep up his face but Fenris ignored it and gave a curt nod.

The girl gave a weak smile at that and replied, “He’s very nice. I’ve never seen a shem stand up for our people before.”

_Our people._

The phrase left a funny taste in Fenris’s mouth but he didn’t voice his thoughts aloud. Instead he asked, “What’s your name?”

“Alicia.”

“You should drink this, Alicia. It will help you regain your strength.” Fenris jiggled the bottle in front of her eyes again. Slowly, she reached out with a shaky, tiny hand and grasped the bottle. Fenris kept his hand under hers and helped her swallow the liquid. After she was done, he took the bottle from her and smiled at her.

“How do you feel?”

Her smile was a little bit stronger this time and he was happy to note that her coughing had subsided a bit. “Better, but my tummy and throat still hurt.”

“Are you cold?”

Alicia gave a small nod and Fenris wasted no time in lowering the sword from his back so that he could remove his cloak.

_Are you crazy? You need that!_

Fenris ignored the voice in the back of his mind that sounded suspiciously like Varric and wrapped Alicia up in it.

“Keep it. I have plenty of spares at home.”

That wasn’t necessarily true, but Fenris did have enough money left over from killing that dragon that he could always go out and buy a new one. The cloak was way too big on her tiny frame, but the way Alicia pulled it tightly around her and gave him a grateful smile pulled at Fenris’s heartstrings.

“Thank you for your kindness.”

Fenris shrugged at her like he had at Anders earlier – gratitude always made him feel embarrassed.

“What will you do when you feel better?”

Alicia bit her lip at that and looked away from him. “I’ll return to the Alienage to help my people.”

“The place where you got sick.”

She frowned at that but didn’t argue with him. Instead what she said was, “The one who brought me here – I think her name was Merrill? I could help her. She’s new to the Alienage and doesn’t have a lot of friends. I could keep her company!”

Fenris thought back to that hole in the wall Merrill called a home and internally frowned. He didn’t care much for her being a blood mage, but he didn’t like seeing any of his companions living in poor conditions. Besides, he knew Hawke would greatly approve of his encouraging Alicia to befriend the Dalish mage.

“I think that’s a great idea. Merrill is a very kind woman.”

Alicia’s face beamed at that and Fenris found himself smiling in response. Hopefully Merrill wouldn’t recruit Alicia into the ways of blood magic. Fenris resolved himself to speak with her about Alicia’s well-being in the future.

He stayed like that for a bit, listening to Alicia talk about all kinds of things – when she asked him if he had ever seen a halla and he had affirmed it, her eyes had grown wide and her voice had excitedly asked him all kinds of questions about them. She seemed to have a fascination with the creatures – Merrill would surely have to take her to see them sometime. Perhaps Fenris could accompany them.

_For protection, that’s all._

But Fenris couldn’t kid himself. He had taken a quick liking to Alicia and found her innocent curiosity refreshing. Eventually he bade her farewell and wished her a fast recovery. Standing back on his feet, Fenris moved to find Anders taking a water break.

The mage smiled at the warrior’s approach and nodded back to where Alicia was resting.

“That was awfully nice of you. I haven’t seen her smile like that in a long time.”

Fenris blushed lightly at the praise and looked away from Anders’s gaze. “It was nothing.”

Anders quirked an eyebrow as a smirk graced his lips but he said nothing. Clearly the mage thought differently.

Fenris attempted to glare at him but the look didn’t quite meet his heart. The warrior leaned against the closest wall and crossed his arms.

“How have you been?”

Anders rubbed the back of his neck as his eyes swept the room. “As you can see, there is much work to be done. I shouldn’t have been gone for so long. My patients needed me.”

The self-hatred that seemed to slip into the mage’s words pulled at something in Fenris and the warrior shook his head. “Even you need your rest every now and then. I know you feel responsible for them but even you can only do so much.”

Anders looked back at him gratefully and there was that soft smile again. It made Fenris feel as if the mage saved it only for him. Fenris wasn’t sure how to feel about that.

Clearing his throat, Fenris asked after a minute, “I came here to give you the elfroot and to ask about your offer for dinner. Did you…?” Fenris trailed off as Anders turned entirely to face him and the warrior found the mage’s gaze too much to handle. Looking at his feet, Fenris took a breath and asked, “Would it be a romantic meal or platonic?”

Silence met his question. Fenris shifted on his feet for a few moments before the tension became too much and he looked up into the mage’s face. Anders’s brow was furrowed and he seemed deep in thought. A blush was gracing his features, so Fenris took that as a good sign. The elf looked away from the mage as a sign that he would wait for the mage to make up his mind.

“Is it…is it okay that I want it to be romantic?”

Fenris’s head whipped up at that in surprise. He half-expected Anders to coyly look away in shyness but the mage stood his ground. Fenris felt his heart pound in his chest at the boldness he found in the mage’s amber eyes. Anders was putting his heart out on the line and seemed to have no qualms about doing so.

_How could he be so confident?_

Fenris swallowed the thick lump in his throat and cleared his throat. This was it. Anders was asking him out on a date. A _romantic_ date. Was that something Fenris wanted?

“It is.”

Fenris had aimed for it to come out evenly and nonchalantly but his voice sounded breathless even to his own ears. His blush grew as a huge smile graced the mage’s face. Anders let out a breathless laugh and nodded. “Good! Good. That’s….that’s good.” Anders laughed and Fenris felt some of the tension leave his body as the mage’s awkward side came back into view. “Are you free tonight?”

Fenris licked his lips nervously and he couldn’t help but feel the jump in his heartbeat when he noticed the mage’s eyes track the movement.

“My mansion at seven?”

The most brilliant smile lit up the mage’s face and Fenris felt the wind knocked out of him as Anders replied, “I look forward to it.”


End file.
